Category D 350Z

zedboy

zedboy

Club Member
I'm interested in buying a 350Z in a few months time, so I've started to check out prices UK vs Import, insurance prices etc etc.

I've come across a 350, category D for sale. What are peoples opinions??? Are they worth avoiding, or are they a bargain? It has been repaired by Nissan.

How much does the Cat D affect the price?

I would be grateful of opinions.

Thanks
 
moggy240

moggy240

Insurance Valuations Officer
Staff member
Club Member
or this might help
I am considering buying a vehicle that was a category D loss. How does this affect the price of the vehicle and does the category D loss stay with for the life of the vehicle or is there anyway it can be removed?

A category D loss in the UK is what is called repairable salvage. The vehicle is damaged to the extent that the retail cost of the repair does not exceed the retail pre-accident value (PAV). The insurance company has decided that though the car is repairable, it is not economical to do so due to their policies or guidelines.

A Category D vehicle can be bought at auction and repaired by those that are able. This is due to the fact that the automobile's damage was determined to be non-structural. Many times the car was written off by the insurance company due to it being stolen and recovered after the claim had been paid to the owner/policyholder.

A vehicle that is under the Category D loss does not need a VIC inspection to return to the roadway but a notification regarding the vehicle's status will remain on the its vehicle history check.

The extent to which to having a the car classified as a Category D will affect the value depends mainly on the type of damage that occurred to the car, the age of the vehicle and the quality of work done to the vehicle to make it roadworthy once again.

From the information we could find, a rough estimate is that a Category D vehicle can loss 25 to 30 percent of its value due to the classification. The loss classification will also be listed on a vehicle check that you or anyone else does on the vehicle through HPI Limited, Auto Trader Vehicle Check or any of the other companies that offer vehicle history checks.

It does not appear that the loss classification can be taken off the vehicle, but you want to double check this information with DirectGov. This site was produced by the Central Office of Information and provides information from across UK Government departments to help the needs of citizens across the United Kingdom
 
Arkwright

Arkwright

Inactive
Part of my job, years ago, was to examine vehicles that had been written off and relicensed for use on the road. These varied from slight pannel damage to cut and shuts and there was some truly horrific stuff out there. We had one bloke in our area that used to rebuild Reliant Robins! imagine what they looked like.

Things have altered a lot since those days and I think you should find that most genuine repairers will have photographs showing the vehicle before they started if not throughout the whole process. I understand that when your vehicle goes to a garage for repair these days it is common practice to photograph it in order to substantiate the estimate.

If I were to consider a rebuit write off today I would want to see pics of the damage before repair and if it was as you say rebiult by Nissan there should be paperwork to back up the repair and I would expect it to be substantially below guide price.
 
Arkwright

Arkwright

Inactive
The other thing to bear in mind is that as Moggys post says, the CatD tag is never lost from the vehicle so if you sell it you must declare it and I would say that although you may have been happy with it you may struggle to find a purchaser to take it off your hands.

If you didn't declare it on sale you could find yourself on the nasty end of a legal claim later on.
 
JakTheRuby

JakTheRuby

Club Member
It's got good and bad points:
a) It's good if you want a good deal (a cheap price on an expensive motor)
b) It's bad if you wanna get rid of it (because it'll always be a cat.d)

Buying one depends on how much driving you're gonna do in it. If you're gonna use the car lots and put lots of miles on it (and have fun) then you can bag yourself a good deal. If you're not then you're just buying a pre-knackered car that'll be a bugger to shift when you get bored of it.
 
zedboy

zedboy

Club Member
Is it a myth that the Cat D status can be removed if the car is inspected by an approved authority?
 
Rob Gaskin

Rob Gaskin

Treasurer
Staff member
Site Administrator
Agree with Jak the Ruby!

It will always have the stigma attached and you will always know it.

In practical terms a Cat D car will be a safer car than many a rusty repaired 240!!!!

One is a classic to be admired, one is a bent motor!

Funny old world.

Derek, my first 'car' was a Reliant at 16yrs of age. Made up of 2 cars - one body and 2 chassis cut and shut (overlapped by 12"). Now there's a story. I have lots of 'em

My Dad was a genius (still going strong at 86). If you have seen the film ....Fastest Indian
you'll know the kind of fella! Currently helping to produce a book about him.
 
zedboy

zedboy

Club Member
I think you're right Rob. It would always be at the back of my mind that it was a Cat D. There is a really nice 05 plate on ebay so I was very tempted, but that niggle would always be there!!! So I've decided to leave that one and wait for the real deal, at the right price (of course!)

Interestingly I rang around a few insurers and some wouldn't insure them at all, while others weren't bothered that it was a CAT D.

I still don't know if being able to remove them of the register is 'a reality' or 'a myth'

Thanks Guys

Mike
 
bro973x

bro973x

Well-Known Forum User
I work at a Coachbuilders and have seen over the years many cat D repairs. As far as I am concerned and have witnessed, The repair is always inspected by the VRBA and given the all clear. No declaration ,once approved,is needed.The vehicle,once completed,is as good as (if not better in our case!) as the original construction so no worries are warrented or valid. All this stuff about declaration is rubbish!
 
C

chesterfield

Active Forum User
Not been on for a while, but just doing a google search and came across this thread as a result - could someone direct me to this Cat D 350z please..

I was seriously thinking of putting a deposit on a new GTR, but have decided I will have a lot more fun with a track toy and trailer, and something I dont mind pranging. Ive owned a cat D car in the past and was happy with it, and if its going to get bumped/broken on a track, I may as well start with a cheaper car and spend the extra on additions and modifications (and repairs :) )
 
zedboy

zedboy

Club Member
The car was on ebay and has now finished. It was an 05 plate and sold for 13,200 approximately. The reserve was 10,000.

I was interested in it, but the law/info isn't clear and I decided not to play with something that I didn't fully understand, incase I got burnt.

GOOD LUCK
 
A

Argyll

New Forum User
I would double check that it has been repaired by Nissan as claimed. Most Cat D write off's are beyond economical repair by major garages so some people buy them and repair them in their spare time at home thus saving on the overheads that major Garages have.

The question I would ask myself is 'If it was made a Cat D write off then why was it repaired at a Nissan garage bearing in mind their astronomical prices on labour and parts'? It doesn't make sense!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top